For the better part of a decade, The Walking Dead was a blockbuster hit for AMC. However, declining ratings and cast departures have cast an uncertain cloud on the future of the franchise. Regardless, AMC is doubling down on Robert Kirkman’s zombie epic. Now, the network has confirmed that a second Walking Dead spinoff is in the works.
Via Deadline, AMC made the announcement during a call with investors. COO Ed Carroll said the Walking Dead spinoff is in “active development.” He added that the network isn’t “at a stage where we’ll be announcing its plans to premiere. But we have hired creative people that have pitched story outlines. We feel very good about the development of that series. We’re not in a position to talk about partnerships in terms of other territories or ancillary windows, other than that there’s a healthy appetite for it and we’ve had a number of conversations with a lot of players in the space.”
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Former Walking Dead star Lauren Cohen recently indicated that a Maggie-centric spinoff have been discussed. However, she is currently headlining the ABC series, Whiskey Cavalier, which would probably limit her availability. Andrew Lincoln is going to star in a trilogy of Walking Dead movies for AMC. Danai Gurira may potentially be joining Lincoln’s new films, since she is slated to depart the show after the tenth season.
Carroll also addressed the ratings decline of the main series.
“We are well aware that when a show has been around for nine years, you would expect viewership to be declining,” said Carroll. “But I think we’ve managed that and managed that well. When The Walking Dead is no longer part of the channel, I think that will have more of an impact on revenue than on [income] because generally expenses go up as the seasons continue and viewership declines. That’s just a general pattern with any show that’s been around as long as The Walking Dead has.”
What do you want to see in a new Walking Dead spinoff TV series? Let us know in the comment section below!
